Gareth Southgate's documentary, 'Changing the Game for Young Men', has been accused of sidestepping the fundamental issues facing young men in the UK. Critics argue that the programme fails to adequately address the complex underlying reasons behind statistics such as more boys owning smartphones than living with their fathers.
Dr Michael Richardson, a senior lecturer at Newcastle University specialising in human geography, believes that Southgate's proposed solutions are 'tokenistic' and a 'missed opportunity'. He argues that the documentary presents statistics without exploring the social and economic conditions shaping young men's lives, such as insecure work, housing instability, relationship breakdowns, and the family court system.
Dr Richardson criticises the programme for using what he calls 'apolitical rhetoric', which risks obscuring the issues it aims to illuminate. He advocates for a deeper understanding of the social and economic conditions shaping young men's lives and suggests that programmes rooted in specific places can be genuinely transformative, particularly environmental initiatives like beekeeping or bike maintenance.
A recent trend of older men entering the teaching profession could provide crucial role models for young men. Since the pandemic, there has been a 43% increase in men aged over 40 entering initial teacher training in England, with only one in five male applicants accepted onto a course last year compared to half of all women.
The charity Now Teach, which supports career changers into teaching, reports that 53% of their new hires starting this September are men, significantly higher than the 33% national school intake. With an average age of 49, these teachers bring decades of professional and lived experience from diverse fields, serving as inspiring figures.